Yves Larock

Yves Larock is a frenzied self-taught producer and an international DJ who has developed a highly distinctive and personal style in the last two years with tracks like ‘Zookey’ in 2005, ‘Rise Up’ in 2007 and ‘By Your Side’ in 2008. ‘Zookey’, a single which sold over 150 000 copies, was signed by the Africanism and Defected labels and made Yves Larock’s name known to a wide audience. Next ‘Rise Up’ signed by Universal and Ministry of Sound among others, proved a global hit, with the singer Jaba on vocals it ranked #1 on dance charts in over twenty countries. Since then Yves has continued to come up with the goods and counts the likes of Pete Tong as a fervent supporter at Radio 1.

Influenced no doubt by his hip-hop roots, ten years in the swing of things have inevitably left their mark; Yves hit upon the idea of blending house, Zouk and reggae in an original style. The search for ethnic instruments, steel drums, balafons or banjos was a creative choice, reflecting a truly personal style and a fear of becoming too repetitive or being classified as middle of the road. Larock’s more recent hits include ‘Don’t Turn Back’, ‘Respect’ featuring Jaba, ‘Without Love’ featuring Tony Sylla and Akil Wingate and ‘Girl’ featuring Tony Sylla and Tara McDonald. Yves Larock’s discreet and reserved character is an intentional move to protect himself from too much stardom, even though he criss-crosses the world to play in the leading clubs and lights up dancefloors every weekend.